PPP leader accuses Punjab govt of supporting JuD

IslamabadP: A senior leader of the ruling
Pakistan People`s Party has criticised the government of
Punjab province for allegedly facilitating and supporting the
Jamaat-ud-Dawah, blamed by India for the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

PPP spokesperson and parliamentarian Fauzia Wahab said
the government of Pakistan, which is ruled by the opposition
PML-N, had "banned" JuD after it was included in a United
Nations blacklist.

However, the group was still active in Punjab with the
alleged support of the provincial government, she said.
Wahab made the remarks while speaking on a point of
order in the National Assembly or lower house of parliament
yesterday.

"The provincial government is not only supporting the
(JuD) but also facilitating it," she said.

The JuD led a procession in Punjab and had published
advertisements as well, she said.

The Pakistan government sealed offices of the JuD
across the country and froze its assets and bank accounts
after it was declared a front for the banned Lashker-e-Taiba
by the UN Security Council in 2008.

However, federal authorities have not issued any
formal notification banning the JuD.

Official documents of the Punjab government released
earlier this year showed that over Rs 82 million was provided
to the JuD and its allied organisations in the province`s
budget for fiscal 2009-10.

A majority of the funds went to the JuD`s headquarters
at Muridke near Lahore while the rest was provided to schools
run by the group.